Lazy Creek Camp for Troubled Teens
by less-hebraic-more-fabrayic
Summary: A summer programme for troubled youth. Santana Lopez finds herself being shipped off to a summer camp where unlikely friendships and relationships begin. AU Fanfic.
1. Chapter 1

**I do not own Glee. This fic is AU and none of the characters know each other although they live in the same city. I'm difficult, I know. Also, I live in the UK so some of the locations in Lima are made up because I don't know the real names. Roll with it. Enjoy!**

_**CHAPTER 1: THE LAST CHANCE**_

Her grades needed to be boosted. Her attitude needed to improve. The fighting needed to stop. She needed a better group of friends. These were just a third of the things that were spat from the mouth of Carlos Lopez, as he leaned over the expensive dining table facing his youngest child, Santana, on her fifteenth birthday. Santana rolled her eyes, looking as if she had a shield in front of her tanned face on which the criticism from her father just bounced off.

"Santana! Listen to me!" boomed Carlos, pinching the bridge of his nose, eyes blazing. 

"I am, papá," Santana replied, giving him a dose of her fluttering eyelashes.

"I am serious, Santana! How is it that we get through three boarding schools, a young ladies institute, seven private schools and two tutors but nothing will help? I'm _trying_ Santana, damn it, I'm trying!"

Gloria Lopez walked over, still dabbing her tears with a tissue, and put a hand on her husband's shoulder. Santana's older twin sisters, Gabriela and Adriana, shook their heads. Her older brother, Emilio, looked on into the distance as if the view of the lawn from the dining room's window was more interesting than the image of his family crumbling at the table; or perhaps because he was the only person in the Lopez household that never criticised Santana.

It took a moment for Carlos to regain his usual calm tone, squeezing his wife's hand. Gloria stepped back in between Gabriela and Adriana, who held both of their mother's hands and stared at their father waiting for him to speak.

"This, Santana," Carlos said, quietly, pulling a brochure out of a drawer and sliding it across the table to Santana. "Is your last chance. It's a summer camp, designed for people like.." he struggled to find the right words without sending his daughter into one of her tantrums. "People like you." he finished. Santana's eyebrows raised, as her eyes trailed down on to the cover of the brochure.

"Read it," her father urged. Santana cleared her throat, and Adriana moved to read it from over her shoulder.

"Lazy Creek Camp, a summer programme for troubled young people." Santana read off the page. She opened the first few pages, and her gaze fell on the prices; as did Adriana's.

"What the hell? You're spending more money on her? You've already spend thousands!" Adriana yelled, making everybody jump.

"Stop it," Carlos said, a note of finality in his voice that caused Adriana to fall silent.

"She has a point.." came Gabriela's voice. "You wouldn't have done that for Emilio, or Addy, or me." Adriana nodded, looking furious at her father.

"Santana is going and that is it! Stop arguing!" Carlos yelled, causing his wife to sob more profusely. There were more protests from the twins, more crying from Gloria and more shouting from Carlos; while Santana sat still and quiet before going up to her room. Her father came up to bring some dinner in the evening, and told Santana she would be going the next morning, that she should pack, and that this would be her last chance to make herself right before she ruined her future.

That's how Santana ended up on a large coach leaving Lima Airport at 6am the next morning, only saying goodbye to Emilio who hugged her tight and gave her his spare iPod in case hers died on the way there. She promised to text, email, and if she absolutely had to resort to using pen and paper, almost every day. The twins didn't seem too angry that Santana ignored their existence as Emilio loaded her three suitcases on to the coach, her mother cried and Carlos blew a kiss to his youngest daughter.

The tiny coach's engine started to rumble, and Santana climbed on, securing herself two seats at the back and waving goodbye to her brother who looked as if there were tears in his eyes. Santana sat nearest to the window, using the seat next to her to store her expensive handbag and a plastic bag of food that her mother had told Emilio to give her; because it was the only way she would take it.

There were a surprisingly larger number of 'troubled kids' on the coach. It could've just looked that way because of how small it was. Nobody dared sit on the back row of five seats near Santana, her glare had ensured that. She noticed a short boy, or at least he looked short while he was sitting down by the way he hardly took up any seat at all, with dark curly hair and prominent eyes. Beside him, a boy with a rounded baby face and light brown hair, wearing Marc Jacobs and blaring Beyonce in his diamond-studded earphones.

Nearer to Santana was a tall, blonde girl who gazed dreamily around and hugged a unicorn plush to her chest. What kind of insane place was she being sent to?  
>A tall, extremely tall, actually, boy with short brown hair was beside the blonde, looking uncomfortable at the way she was talking to the toy unicorn. A small blonde girl with big eyes and a pretty smile sat in front and to the left of Santana, with her legs stretched out on two seats and was singing under her breath, playing with her iPhone. A few times she seemed to look up and meet Santana's eyes for a quarter of a second before looking back at the screen, blushing.<p>

A tanned boy with a thick mohawk sat beside a small brunette girl with a large nose who by the look on her face was extremely uncomfortable with the way he was hitting on her and gaping at her breasts. Santana thought she shouldn't have worn a low-cut shirt on a bus of strangers, and that was coming from _Santana_. There was also a blonde boy with huge lips looking extremely nervous nearer to the front, sat beside a girl with blonde-brown hair with a shirt that had the name 'Sugar' printed across it

She wanted to melt into the dirty floor of the small, musky coach and disappear. She would be spending _six_ God damn weeks with these idiots, and if she didn't find a miraculous way to stick it out her father would probably disown her. And her mother would cry a lot, which was torture alone for the sheer irritability of it. Santana put her earphones in, turned up whatever music Emilio had put on his iPod and closed her eyes. She listened to her brother's music instead of her own so she could feel closer to him, instead of the harsh reality that was Santana drifting further and further away on his stupid coach while Emilio would have to spend his summer listening to Carlos ranting about work, Gloria crying and the twins constantly arguing over who borrowed who's Jimmy Choos. The thought of Emilio waiting for her seemed to push her into a sleep.

–

She dreamed. It was the best dream she'd had in a long while. More of a memory replaying than a dream. She was in the Lopez's pool with Emilio and his friends, who had always been irrevocably kind to Santana since she was a little girl. They were all throwing an inflated beach ball around, catching it and throwing it again. A voice interrupted.

"Um.. E-excuse me? Hello?" Santana batted her arms, squeezing her eyes shut and not wanting Emilio to fade away. The cool feeling of water around her seemed to disappear.

"Hello? You need to wake up.. W-we're here.. Excuse me?" A gentle hand matched the voice and was placed on Santana's shoulder. Eventually her eyes flashed open.

It was the small brunette with the large nose, and the sky had gone from dark and foggy to blindingly bright and sunny.

Santana stood up and pulled all of her belongings into her bag before following the girl off the coach and into beating white hot sun. A woman with short red hair, a barbie-esque plastic smile and a clipboard. "Hello happy campers! Welcome to Lazy Creek Camp where you can get back on track and enjoy life! Lazy Creek is split into four sections. Aqua Springs, Shady Lagoon, Sunny Cove and Emerald Rivers Edge. I am the head of camp for Sunny Cove, and my name is Lisa. There are four more coaches coming. All of you will be in Sunny Cove," she gestured to a stretch of grass behind her that held five log cabins behind her. "Behind these cabins where the hill goes down, is a lake. The lake is where you will wash, and wash your clothes. Everybody stand in a circle around me."

The group stood in the circle around plastic-smile Lisa, and she rotated slowly on the spot to face each and every one of them with her creepy smile.

"Everybody say your name, and then I will assign you to your cabins. You first," she said, pointing at the blonde boy with big lips.

"Uh, I'm Sam.. Evans."

"Rachel Berry."

"Finn Hudson."

"Sugar Motta."

"Noah Puckerman, call me Puck."

"Kurt Hummel."

"Blaine Anderson."

"Brittany Pierce."

"Quinn Fabray."

"Santana Lopez." A few eyes landed on her when she spoke her name, taking her in as she had done with them. Lisa grinned and read her clipboard.

"Okay kids, grab your bags when I call your name and head over to whichever cabin you are assigned to. You will have a cabin partner, too. The numbers are on the doors."

She took a deep breath and started to read off the list of names, still grinning.

"Samuel Evans and Brittany Pierce, you are assigned to Cabin One."

Sam and Brittany, who was still clutching her unicorn, picked up their cases and hand-luggage before walking up the hill to the first cabin. Sam didn't look too happy, but Brittany looked delighted.

"Finn Hudson and Noah Puckerman, Cabin Two."

Finn and Noah picked up their suitcases and walked up the hill. Santana could have sworn she saw Noah check out Finn's ass...

"Blaine Anderson and Kurt Hummel, Cabin Three."

Kurt and Blaine, already holding their bags, marched up the hill and kept stealing smiles at each other. Great, everyone was already 100% gay for each other. Literally.

"Rachel Berry and Sugar Motta, Cabin Four."

Rachel and Sugar trailed off up the hill after the two boys, and their blurred figures disappeared behind the row of log cabins.

"Quinn Fabray and Santana Lopez, Cabin Five. You're lucky, it's the best one."

Lisa handed the two girls their camp maps. Santana didn't make eye contact with the blonde, and picked up her bags before shooting Lisa a dirty look and making her way up the hill. The blonde, who she now knew as Quinn, didn't speak. They walked down the row of cabins until they reached the last one, which looked a little larger than the others. The two girls entered and Santana dumped her bags near the door, looking around the ground floor.

The kitchen, dining room and living room were all integrated. It was a big space, but there were no walls on the ground floor. There was a big fireplace in front of a couch, no television, and an old-fashioned layout where everything was made of wood. A small wooden staircase led up to the second floor. Santana grabbed her bags and followed Quinn upstairs to the bedroom.

Also old-fashioned, the bedroom consisted of two double beds with sickly floral bedspreads and a small square window.

"So, Santana, right?" Quinn's voice made Santana jump, because she'd been staring out of the window. She pulled her suitcases up on to the bed and opened all three, unpacking.

"Yeah, Santana. You're Quinn, right?" she asked, piling her underwear up and loading it into the wooden chest of drawers beside the bed. Quinn nodded.

–

Silence settled in the room again, and about fifteen minutes passed while the girls unpacked every last thing into the drawers and stowed their cases underneath their double beds. Santana cracked open the window, sighing and collapsing back on her bed.

"You're hot," Quinn said, sitting opposite Santana on her own bed and fanning herself with her map of the camp grounds.

"Excuse me?" Santana asked. She was used to attention, only from guys.

"You're hot. You just sat on that coach for six hours in the heat and came into a boiling cabin. You must be hot. We should go down to that lake place." Quinn said, sounding as if this were extremely obvious.

"Oh, right, yeah." Santana said, sitting up and looking in her drawers for a bikini.

The two girls walked out of the cabin and down to the lake, which was deserted and hidden from view of the cabins from thick foliage. A breathtakingly beautiful waterfall sat at back-center of the part of the lake at the bottom of the hill. The waterfall was surrounded by rocks, and Santana and Quinn dived head first into the cool water.

**In the next chapter, Quinn and Santana get to know each other better. A 'getting to know you' session is planned by Lisa for Sunny Cove and some other relationships are revealed inside the group, some unintentionally. **


	2. Chapter 2

_**CHAPTER TWO: GETTING TO KNOW YOU**_

_**(continued directly from the end of chapter one)**_

The water was more cool than Santana had expected, and it hit her sharp as she dived headlong into it. She broke the surface, looking around and seeing Quinn had already swum in the direction of the rocks underneath the waterfall. She disappeared behind the thick sheet of water, and Santana followed. She pulled herself up on a rock, crawled through the waterfall and came to rest in a dip of smooth black rocks covered by an old, tattered blanket. Apparently this was a place that previous campers must have used for their own sanctuary.

They were completely hidden from view due to the waterfall and the dip of rocks, it was almost like they were sat in a bathtub. Only their heads were visible beside the waterfall. Neither of them spoke, and it was another comfortable silence where neither of the girls felt pressured to speak. The rushing sound of the waterfall made Santana's blood pound in her ears, and the blaring heat of the sun could still be felt through the icy sheet beside them.

"So.. Tell me about yourself." Quinn said, with a one-sided grin. Santana gave her a questioning look. "Well, we're spending six weeks together.. So I figured we should at least get to know each other." Quinn mumbled, looking a little embarrassed.

"Oh, I wasn't trying to be rude -" Santana said, apologetically. Her mind was screaming at her, of _course_ she meant to be rude, she was Santana! Why was she apologizing?

Quinn smiled, sitting cross-legged in front of Santana. "I'll go first, then," she said, clearing her throat. "I'm Quinn. I like to sing, dance and paint. I'm a quiet person, I suppose.. And my parents sent me here because I.. Did some bad stuff. Too many parties and drugs.. I kept up an act for a while, of course it wouldn't work if I told my Christian family I was a cokehead. And someone I thought was my friend told them, so I had to get clean and come here." Quinn smiled when she'd finished, a soft smile, in reaction to Santana's wide eyes.

"You wouldn't expect it from me, right?" she asked, and Santana shook her head before taking a deep breath and starting her own story. "My dad.. He's not around a lot. He spends too much time in the doctor's office and not enough time at home with his kids, then he'd buy all four of us off with presents and money and cards and designer bullshit. I only felt close to my brother, Emilio.. So I started to fight, smoke, drink, get kicked out of schools. I tried countless boarding schools and private institutes, and this is my last chance." Quinn didn't look remotely surprised. They never did, when she told friends she got close to at new schools, until she was moved to somewhere else for a month, sometimes a week.

"I read all about this place on the internet," Quinn said, stretching her hand out and trailing the waterfall with her fingers. "They have a meeting on the first day for people to get to know each other, and then a party on the first night with no supervision. It's only for your camp quarter, so we'll just be with Sunny Cove." Santana nodded, stretching her legs out.

Silence swept over the girls, and they both sat still, interrupted occasionally by quick glances at each other.

"You're beautiful." Quinn said, matter-of-factly. "So are you," Santana replied. Quinn moved forward and dived through the waterfall back into the lake. Santana thought she moved gracefully, like some sort of mermaid. She followed Quinn head first into the cold water.

The two girls swam around each other, splashing and diving. Eventually they lost their breath and swam back to the edge of the lake, sitting on rocks and drying off in the sun.

Santana felt strange, she liked hanging around with this quiet, kind girl but aside from Emilio she'd never had somebody to feel close to. Her sisters had never taken her into their group of friends because they had each other and she was the youngest. Without Emilio, Santana didn't know where she would be.

Quinn pulled her sandals back on and started a slow walk up the hill, followed by Santana. They went straight upstairs to brush their hair out and pick their outfits for the group meeting. Both of them settled with tank tops and denim shorts, Santana with her dark hair in a braid and Quinn with her long blonde hair in a high ponytail.

They walked out of the cabin together, in their usual comfy silence, and found a 'camp centre' in the opposite direction of the lake. Lisa sat on a chair inside, with a circle of plastic chairs around her. Finn, Puck, Brittany and Sam were already sat in there, chatting animatedly to one another. Santana sat beside Quinn, and Kurt and Blaine soon strolled in followed by Rachel and Sugar.

"Right! Hello, campers! I trust you've all settled in fantastically! This session is tradition on the first day here, and one by one you will all tell your stories to the circle of trust, so we all know each other!" Lisa's plastic grin was shining in the sun flooding in from the open windows as she spoke. "Then tonight there is a party in here for Sunny Cove, and I won't be here." Santana saw Puck's face break out into a smile as he high-fived Finn, and it almost looked like Puck held on to Finn's fingers a little longer than necessary...

"You, hello? Are you listening? It's your turn." Lisa's voice near Santana bought her out of her reverie, and the whole group was waiting for her to speak.

"Oh, sorry," she cleared her throat. "I'm Santana.. I'm here on a last chance because my family thinks I'm a screw up and if I don't fix myself I'll be a crackwhore."

The room was silent apart from Quinn's barely audible giggles, she was obviously adjusting to the difference between Santana's sarcasm and honesty.

Kurt, who was sat on Santana's right, spoke next. "I'm Kurt. I'm gay, openly, and I've been bullied for it since I was nine. I snapped and beat one of the bullies up so badly he's in an electrical wheelchair and can't talk. I felt so disgusted with myself I started heavily drinking, so this is my community service and a chance to reform myself."

Blaine spoke. "I'm Blaine, I'm also gay. I was bullied but that isn't the cause of my problems. I.. I made a mistake. I went to a friend's house to spend the day and... He had alcohol, and then we all got into his car and I wanted to tell him to slow down, I swear I did, I wanted to," he said this as if justifying himself to an invisible man, tears pooling in his eyes. "But I didn't want them to call me stupid so I kept my mouth shut... And he crashed. And three of our best friends died, and the driver can't use his legs... And I'm the only person that just walked away with a broken wrist."

A moment passed, then Sam spoke. "All I did was cover a few walls of a shopping mall in graffiti.. So I have to spend six weeks here as community service. As well as the three days I spent scrubbing the walls." Everybody except Brittany laughed, even Lisa. Sam looked hurt.

"I'm Brittany and I broke into a toy store late at night to steal all of the unicorns. They were sad and I set them free." Again, people laughed. Sam didn't, instead he patted Brittany's shoulder and smiled at her.

"I'm Finn.. And I let my friend borrow my cousin's motorcycle and he drove it through a supermarket and caused a lot of damage.. He's in a young offender's institute but I just get to do this. I don't mind, really. The people are cool." he smiled at Noah who smiled back and took a deep breath to start his own story.

"I'm Puck. I got drunk and tried to drive me and a friend to the booze store but I crashed it into three cars and killed a cat." Nobody laughed, although they did look a little uncomfortable. Lisa started another speech on the party and told everybody to be responsible, and the group shuffled outside to walk back up the hill.

Noah was telling everybody that he'd filled up one whole suitcase with alcohol and it was now stored in the kitchen of his and Finn's cabin; and everybody could get 'a buzz' at the party.

Quinn and Santana didn't go into their cabin, instead they went for a walk in the forest area. Small talk wasn't necessary with them, and they only started to make any conversation at all when Santana let out a random snort of laughter in the middle of the silence which was only interrupted with the crunching sound of their feet on leaves.

"What?" Quinn asked, smiling softly again.

"Just.. How obvious is everybody here? Like, anyone could see that Finn and Puck are in the closet and have a thing for each other. Finn was practically hanging on to every word Puck said, and Kurt and Blaine are all out and proud so there's a chance we'll hear them banging through the night. Brittany and Sam will probably be a couple soon, too."

She finished with another laugh, before poking her head around a tree and walking through a clearing with a gasp.

"What is it?" Quinn said, following her through a bush into the small space. Two very small trees sat about a metre apart, their branches curving strangely around each other, twisting until they were spaced apart in the perfect length for somebody to fashion a bedsheet into a hammock. Santana tested it, sitting on it, and it was as sturdy as if it were a real bed. The branches didn't even quiver when Quinn lay beside Santana on the hammock, and they both laughed at how unusual it was.

"If everyone else is a couple... What does that make us?" Quinn asked, sounding curious.

"What does that mean? When did I say I was a les-"

"I didn't say you were.. I was just saying."

"Oh. Are you-?"

"I'm open to anything." Quinn said, smiling.

"I guess I am, too.." Santana said, frowning slightly. She'd never really thought of it.

Quinn leaned over and kissed Santana on the cheek, before lying back down like nothing happened. The place where she'd kissed her burned and her heart beat louder than anything she'd ever heard. It was a miracle it didn't tear a hole in her chest. They lay there for a while watching the tops of the trees sway in the small wind.

"We should get ready," Quinn said, sitting up and hopping down off of the hammock. Santana looked confused for a moment. "For the party," Quinn said, laughing.

7pm, Quinn and Santana's cabin –

"You look great," Quinn exclaimed, clapping her hands together as Santana emerged from the bathroom. They called it a bathroom, but it was just a small square room with a toilet and sink; because the campmates were required to wash in the lake.

"You think so?" Santana asked, checking herself in the mirror. She was wearing a loose-shouldered red summer dress and a pair of flats, due to the heat. Quinn nodded enthusiastically and looked to Santana for approval of her own outfit choice. Santana smiled and spun her around with a warm laugh. The two girls departed the cabin and walked down the hill beside Brittany and Sam who were holding hands.

"That was fast," Quinn mouthed to Santana.

The windows were wide open in the camp centre, and music was blasting from the speakers. The doors, however, were closed, in case any heads of camp were to come by.

Puck was inside handing out drinks in red plastic cups. He was telling the truth when he'd told the group he'd come prepared with alcohol, Santana was amazed that he could have fit all those crates of beer and vodka into one suitcase.

"Ladies," Puck said, handing them both drinks. He tried more leering and flirting with Quinn, Santana, Rachel and Sugar. Santana held her tongue, feeling that if he and Finn had something going on she shouldn't out them. Kurt and Blaine were standing closely together, as were Brittany and Sam. Quinn pulled Santana up from her plastic chair to dance.

They must have danced for about an hour, maybe more. She wasn't even tired. Song after song and the only thing that mattered was Santana's hands on Quinn's hands and the both of them spinning around and knocking into each other, laughing. Eventually people started to quieten down as the slower songs kicked in, and Santana collapsed into a chair beside Quinn.

Brittany and Sam were making out in one corner, Kurt and Blaine in the other. Rachel and Sugar were on each other's laps and whispering things in each other's ears while Puck and Finn were nowhere to be seen. Quinn leaned over to ask Santana if they should leave, and wanting nothing more than to escape the kissing sounds from the couples and collapse into her bed, Santana nodded.

Santana opened the door for Quinn and dropped her cup at what she saw in the dark. Finn and Puck were wrapped tightly around each other giving messy, drunken kisses and murmuring things that were a mix of 'I love you baby' and 'You're so amazing'. Quinn cleared her throat and Finn fell over in shock while Puck started stuttering; before the two boys ran away into the forest. Santana and Quinn exchanged laughs and stumbled up the hill to the cabin.

She didn't remember much from the rest of the night, but waking up in the morning in your own bed with Quinn Fabray wrapped around you and the sun warming your skin through the open window wasn't the worst thing in the world.

Troubled kids camp wasn't that bad... _Really_.

**In chapter three, Lisa organizes a team building exercise, Quinn and Santana realize they are the only two people left in the camp that aren't a couple and decide to discuss their feelings.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Lisa organizes a team building exercise which causes Quinn and Santana to be part of a dangerous accident.**

Santana's eyes fluttered open, momentarily blinded by the sunlight streaming in from the open window. Drawing in a deep breath, she got the feeling something heavy was restricting her stomach; and upon looking down she saw Quinn's arm draped around her middle. Quinn herself was lower down in the bed, and judging by her position her head had been on Santana's chest, but had fallen off on to the mattress.

Santana smiled, noticing how this was the first time in a while she'd felt happy.. And this was the first morning waking up here. She edged out of the bed, careful not to disturb Quinn, and stretched before walking downstairs into the kitchen. She found a piece of paper in the drawer, and a pen, and started writing a letter to Emilio. She'd promised, after all, and down here her phone didn't get any signal.

_Dear Em,_

_Hi. It's Santana, obviously. I imagined in my head that I'd write my first letter to you telling you how awful a time I'm having and how suicidal this place is making me. But, I'd be lying to you. I'm enjoying myself. I know, I didn't expect it either... But I met someone. A girl. I can tell you this because you understand and you won't judge me. Her name is Quinn, and I know I've only known her for one day but this morning I woke up and we'd been cuddling all night._

_I'd like to see what happens with her. She's beautiful and lovely, and I don't feel like I have to try with her, like I feel with you. Obviously I don't think of you in that way, but I feel like she understands me too. I don't really have anything else to say, I guess._

_I miss you, a lot. I love you so much. I hope mom doesn't cry too much and dad isn't shouting at you. _

_Lots of love,_

_Santana. Xxxxxxxx_

She popped the letter in an envelope she'd bought with her in case she'd have to write with pen and paper, stuck on one of her own stamps and wrote out her address. Yawning, Santana turned on the kitchen tap and let it run for a moment while she ran out to put the letter in the cabin's mailbox outside, where the heads of camp took them every afternoon to send them home. She had not long got herself the glass of water when she heard Quinn descend the wooden stairs and walk into the kitchen, hoisting herself up to sit on the kitchen counter top.

"Good morning," she said, drinking what was left of Santana's water.

"Same to you." Santana replied, walking over to the cabin's front door and pulling a piece of yellow paper from under the bottom. A note from Lisa. Santana read it aloud to Quinn. "Happy Campers, today, after the communal breakfast, which is from 8:30 – 9:00am, I have planned a range of team building exercises and a day of activities for Sunny Cove. The first few will be inside and the majority outside where things could get very messy, so wear old clothes that you don't mind getting stained. I look forward to seeing you there, love from Mommy Lisa. P.S, communal lunches are from 12:00pm – 12:45pm, and communal dinner is from 6:00pm – 6:45pm." Santana snorted, screwing up the piece of yellow paper and throwing it on the floor. "Mommy Lisa? Seriously? She has to be on crack or something."

–

Quinn and Santana, glancing at the clock, saw that it was 8:15am. They rolled their eyes, made a few complaints to one another and rushed upstairs to pull on random clothes. Quinn opted for a t-shirt with one draped shoulder and some three-quarter length jeans while Santana pulled on a tight red tank top and some black denim shorts. Both girls pulled their hair back in ponytails and ran down the hill to the camp centre.

The room was lined with tables around the back walls, and the breakfast was set out in dishes and bowls and boxes all around them, like a buffet. Two long, large tables were in the middle of the room for the camp mates to sit at, and Quinn followed Santana to the back of the room to start spooning scrambled eggs onto their plates.

They ate while Quinn chatted animatedly to Kurt and Blaine, who were holding hands over the table. Puck and Finn weren't making eye contact with each other. Rachel and Sugar weren't there, and Brittany and Sam were making heart-shaped eyes with one another.

"Why do you think Noah and Finn aren't talking?" Quinn asked, looking curious. "Why the hell do you think?" Santana replied, snorting. "How would you react if you got caught in the middle of bumping uglies when you're supposed to be in the closet?"

After breakfast, the boys helped Lisa clear the tables away and everybody was instructed to stand in the middle of the room.

"Okay, campers! Team building! We'll start with the simple indoor exercises, then we'll progress on to the messy outdoor stuff. First thing's first, grab your cabin partner -"

There was a bustle as people shuffled around in the spaces and stood next to their partner. "And fall back on them. They will catch you, to build trust. Without trust, you can't have a healthy relationship," Lisa blew a whistle. "Go!"

As if they were dominoes, half of the room crossed their arms over their chests and fell back into their partners arms – Puck and Finn mastered this with extreme awkwardness – and switched to do it again. "Good job! Follow me," Lisa said, waving a tanned arm and ushering the group outside.

A small table stood on the grass, covered with compasses and maps. The group all made eye contact with each other, dreading what was coming. "Scavenger hunt combined with orienteering! I won't keep you for too long, grab your compass and map. One partner will use the compass, one the map. You'll find the prize in one hour, go!"

–

The group walked in different directions, and after twenty minutes of walking through dense woodland until they were both so out of breath they sat on the dry mud to catch their breath. Quinn was massaging her forearm which she'd cut on a sharp branch, causing it to bleed quite a lot. "Does it hurt?" Santana asked, feeling stupid for even acknowledging the question in her head. "Not really, I just don't like the blood." Quinn replied, looking slightly queasy. Santana looked down at her clothes, which were relatively covered in dry mud and were scratched from the branches. They'd lost the compass a while back and had no idea where they were. Santana, thinking the tank top was ruined anyway, tore off a piece of the red material and tied it tightly around Quinn's wound.

"Thank you," Quinn said, hugging Santana for a moment before continuing to walk. Santana blushed deeply, and followed the ever-curious Quinn into what looked like a small clearing. It was, in fact, the top of a very steep hill and they were on the edge. "We'll have to walk around the edge of this until we reach the rocks over there," Quinn pointed. "Then we can go down that hill and find some of route on the map..." She looked down at the mud-stained map with holes in it from the sharp branches they'd passed. "Okay." Santana said, sounding braver than she felt.

Quinn took a step forward first, holding Santana's hand, and _SNAP!_ A thick branch underneath Quinn's foot broke in two and the two of them tumbled fifty feet before plummeting into a deep streaming creek. It was a miracle they didn't land on the sharp rocks. They both broke the surface of the water, spluttering and thrashing around. The part of the stream they were in had the biggest, strongest waves Santana had ever come across. Santana and Quinn were struggling to find each other's hands without the water rocking them further apart, and Santana felt one big strong current pull her sharply backwards before she tumbled another fifty feet backwards off of a waterfall. Quinn screamed and the lake Santana landed in felt as if it had sliced her entire back open with a sharp knife.

She struggled to swim steady, before she looked up and saw Quinn purposely let go of the rock she was clinging to so she could _jump_ off the waterfall edge and land in the lake beside Santana. "Honey, are you okay? Where does it hurt?" She shouted over the thundering waterfall, and Santana realized she was winded and couldn't speak and could barely breath.

"Bah.. Bah.." She whispered, gesturing to her back. Quinn held her and did a double-take on their surroundings. "We're in that lake! From yesterday!" she said, laughing. "Oh, sorry, bad time, right." Quinn looked guilty, and pulled Santana to the edge of the lake, helping her out and laying her on the ground while she recovered. "I thought I was gonna die," Santana said, once she could speak. "Me too." said Quinn. "I.. I didn't want the last thing I'd said to be something to do with finding a way back to the camp or something. I'd want it to be something Hollywood like 'Damn it, I'm in love with you, Santana.'" Quinn's eyes widened once she'd spoken, and she blushed scarlet. "I didn't mean – sorry if I made you uncomfortable – oh God! I like you, I don't love you, I just have a crush on you okay?"

Santana laughed while Quinn blushed, and after another thirty seconds of comfortable silence; the dark-haired girl sat up and planted a firm, warm kiss on Quinn's lips. It could have lasted forever for all they knew. They broke away after a while, and both of them grinned. "I like you, too." Santana said.

- Communal Dinner, Camp Centre, 6:15pm -

"So, you almost _died_?" Kurt asked, dropping his plastic fork so his roast potato rolled off of the table and on to the lino floor. "Yeah!" Quinn said, nodding enthusiastically. "Like, all of a sudden we fell two hundred feet and BAM we hit water, I swear there were crocodiles and alligators there it was so intense -" she gulped some water and started again, using insane hand gestures to intensify the story. "Then I grabbed this boulder and Santana screamed and she fell down this waterfall and all of a sudden it was like POOOSH and she hit the lake and her back hurt, so I DIVED off of the waterfall and grabbed her, swam over to the edge and had to pump her chest so make her cough up water!" Santana suppressed a smirk, allowing Quinn to stretch the story as far as she liked. Kurt, Blaine, Rachel, Sugar, Sam, Brittany and even Finn and Puck were all staring wide-eyed and open-mouthed at Santana and Quinn, amazed at how she'd supposedly saved Santana from a terrible crocodile-infested fate in the depths of the water.

Lisa had left a note under everybody's doors saying Brittany and Sam had won. Sugar and Rachel were second, Kurt and Blaine third because Kurt started crying when a bird pooped on his designer jeans and Blaine had to calm him down for ten minutes; during which the timer beeped and they handed their marked map in three seconds over the limit. Puck and Finn, like Santana and Quinn, had never turned up to the end of the trail. Although everybody knew this was for an entirely different reason than a near-death experience.

After dinner, which Finn and Puck seemed to be getting along beautifully during, Santana and Quinn went to Kurt and Blaine's cabin to talk about their lives. Kurt had told stories of being bullied and losing his mother, Blaine had told his own bullying stories and spoke about not having much of a relationship with his father, Quinn talked about her religious family and Santana told everyone how amazing Emilio was and how much she looked up to him.

It came close to midnight, and Santana had only glanced at the clock when Kurt and Blaine had fallen asleep in each other's arms in front of the fireplace and Quinn was almost drifting off with her head in Santana's lap. "Q, come on, let's go back to our place." she whispered, leaving a blanket over the boys and walking back to the cabin she shared with the blonde.

The two of them pulled on their pyjamas, and curled up in Santana's bed beside each other, entangled. "I checked the camp community board at dinner..." Quinn trailed off, her breathing smoothing out and becoming slower and softer against Santana's neck. "Tomorrow we have to do a nature trail." "A what?" Santana asked, confused. "A nature trail. Marking trees, finding certain types of plants and animals, and collecting rock samples. I'm taking my sketchbook and pencils so I can draw some landscapes." Quinn said, shuffling to make herself more comfortable." "Oh, okay. I'll bring my camera."

Santana thought Quinn might have replied to this, something sleepy and mumbled, but she was too far into the place between dreaming and reality to pay any attention. Even through her dreams, she could feel Quinn wrapped around her. She felt warm and safe, safer than she'd ever felt before.

**In chapter four, Sunny Cove takes part in the nature trail. Santana and Quinn have some cute fluffy time together while Quinn sketches and Santana takes photographs, and a meeting is held to discuss future plans for the happy campers. **

**By the way, thank you for the kind reviews! I enjoy writing this rather than just smut. I plan on finishing every last chapter in this!**

**xxx**


	4. Chapter 4

**In this chapter, Sunny Cove is made to participate in a nature trail which gives Quinn and Santana some quality time in the woods. After the prize is awarded, Lisa holds a meeting where everybody discusses their futures.**

_Quinn's hands were on Santana's waist, Santana ran her hands through Quinn's blonde hair and she -_ "HAPPY CAMPERS! WAKE UP! YOU'RE ALL OVERSLEEPING! COME ON COME ON!"

The sharp sound of a whistle being blown made Santana and Quinn jump awake. Lisa was outside their window, shouting to all of the other cabins and calling everybody outside. Everybody emerged, messy-haired and in random clothing. Santana's mind was racing at the dream she was having about Quinn. Lisa ordered everybody to the doors of the camp centre and handed out clipboards, Santana took both hers and Quinn's lists as Quinn had run back into the house to retrieve Santana's camera and her own sketchbook and pencils.

The groups broke off, and once again Santana and Quinn found themselves heading into the dense woods with the soft floors and crunching leaves. They walked in silence, only stopping sometimes so Quinn could tick off another insect on their list and inspect animal prints and pieces of bark.

"How do you know so much about nature?" Santana asked, stunned at how three quarters of their checklist was already gone. None of the other pairs could be going this fast, Quinn even knew to climb up five meters of a tree to get the exact right leaf that was meant to be the extra question on the paper, in case you finished. "I spend a lot of time outside since I got clean," Quinn explained, ticking off two more insect names Santana couldn't even pronounce. "My parents wanted me to get out of the house and _socialize_, but nobody wants to socialize with a crackwhore... So I'd sit in the woods. Eventually I took out some nature books from the library and started to find them to entertain myself. I've gotten pretty good at it," she said, smiling. "I can see that." Santana replied.

They rested under the shade of a large tree, the name of which Quinn had told Santana but she couldn't remember, and Quinn took out her sketchbook and started to draw intricate sketches of the flowers and trees in front of them. Santana took the opportunity to take photographs on her expensive camera that her father had bought her as an apology for being at work on her birthday. She snapped a few photos, and turned around to see Quinn had finished a beautiful sketch of Santana lying on her stomach with a camera to her eye, leaning in a patch of flowers.

"It's beautiful," Santana breathed, tracing the drawing with her fingers. "You're beautiful." Quinn replied. Santana, not wanting to just sit there while Quinn did all the work, asked Quinn to explain the different types of leaves to her so she could help. "These ones are Elm, those are Fern, this one is a Holly, that one there is Red Maple, and there's a Sassafras." Santana nodded, not understanding a word but pointing out random leaves anyway and blushing when Quinn gave her a big grin, shaking her head. She also explained insects to Santana, who said, "I did not get a word. I just know what spiders look like cause they make me scream."

Another hour spent in the blazing heat, and Quinn and Santana stumbled out of the woods and saw Lisa clapping enthusiastically. "You're the first two back! Congratulations! You win!"

All they won was a sketchbook and art pencils. Quinn let Santana have it because she already had one, clearly. They headed back to the cabin to get ready for Lisa's meeting in the camp centre at 4pm, and Quinn sat in the front porch sketching.

"Mind if I join you?" Santana asked, bringing her some water. "Go for it," Quinn said, taking the drink. "I'll teach you how to draw landscapes if you like." "I'd love that," Santana said, smiling, and she sat beside Quinn on the wooden steps and opened her pad.

Santana held her pencil above the paper, and Quinn closed her hand over Santana's. "It's all in the wrist technique, you have to flick it at just the right angle – not too firm cause it looks too dark with these graphite pencils. Just lightly, you can always trace over it."

The girls spent the next two hours drawing, Quinn giving tips to Santana as they sketched the view of the lake and waterfall. "Drawing water can be really difficult, you have to practice, wow Santana! That's awesome." she smiled at Santana's drawing, which wasn't as good as her own although she held any criticism.

As four o'clock rolled in, the girls brushed out their hair and tied it up in buns to keep their necks cool in the heat. Before they left Santana realized she had a letter from Emilio.

_To Santana,_

_I'm so glad you wrote to me. I miss you. I slept in your bed last night, because you've always loved having the attic-converted bedroom because it drowns out the noise of the house. Mom and dad were arguing all through the night so I slept up there. I haven't slept that well in so long, I just wish you were here so we could watch silly movies together all night and hide the twins' bags so they fight each other. Remember when we filmed their fight once?_

_I'm glad to hear about this girl you like. She seems lovely. I'm happy for you._

_Love, _

_Emilio. Xxxxxx_

Santana smiled, feeling warm inside. Quinn called from the front door. "You coming? It's about to start."

–

"Okay, campers. This is not a career advice meeting. This is simply a discussion for the group so you can get your thoughts out on where you want to be in life. Where you see yourself in ten years and such. You first," Lisa pointed at Kurt, who rolled his eyes dramatically and took a breath.

"Well, considering I have a criminal record for putting a Neanderthal in a wheelchair, jobs might be pretty difficult. I'd _like_ to be in a university studying fashion, and end up being an editor for Vogue."

Blaine spoke next. "I want to live in New York and be an actor and singer songwriter." he said simply, waiting for Finn to speak.

"I wanna be a movie director. Yeah, that would be awesome. I'd also like to cast the people in the movie."

Puck next. "I want to be a porn star. Failing that, a lawyer. Like I'll ever get into law school."

Brittany. "A moose. A big moose."

Sam. "I'd like to work with homeless people and disabled people, offering support and stuff."

Rachel. "I plan to be a Broadway star and be in all the best Hollywood movies, I'll have my own clothing line and two perfumes along with five number one albums."

Sugar. "I want to stay at home with my children while my g-... Partner, is working. I love kids. I'd also like a part-time job in a nursery."

Quinn. "I'd like to be an art teacher. Maybe with young children or in a college or university. I want to be married, I'm undecided on whether or not I want children. I'd like to be happy."

Finally, Santana. "I want to be a photography teacher. And be married... To the right person."

Lisa gave everybody a speech on how lovely their plans were, and dismissed them.

–

_11pm, Quinn and Santana's bedroom._

"So, who's your 'right girl'?" Quinn asked, snuggling up to Santana in the dark. Santana paused to think. "I.. I don't know. I'd like to know it isn't just a summer fling first." She swallowed, waiting for a reaction from Quinn. "I see. What if it isn't a summer fling? What will you do with your feelings?" Santana closed her eyes. "I guess, first of all I'll be the happiest girl in the world. And then I'll relax because I know what I want for my future and I know I can do it with my 'right girl' with me." Santana felt Quinn smile into her shoulder. "Good."

And with Quinn next to her, envisioning the same future Santana did, that was the best night's sleep she'd ever had.

**Shorter than usual! I'm sorry, I've been revising for lots of important exams and I don't know where my time's gone at all. I didn't get home till very late this evening so I put my schedule on hold to deliver this chapter for you all! Tomorrow I'll try and write more I promise. P.S tell me in the reviews what you think and what you want to see in the story!**

**Chapter 5 contains _someone_ being part of a terrible accident and sustaining a horrific injury, meaning they might not return to camp and may go straight home.. Which is unfortunate for their love interest. Finn and Puck announce their relationship, as do Sugar and Rachel. Santana goes stargazing with Quinn.**


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER FIVE: THE ACCIDENT, THE REVEAL AND THE BLANKET.**

Three weeks. Three out of six weeks already fizzled away from Summer Camp. Now Santana was sat staring out of the bedroom window, wondering if there was any way to make time slow down. Every second Quinn slept and Santana sat motionless was a second wasted. Soon she'd be back home and not sharing a bed with Quinn.

"Morning.. I didn't know you were awake." came Quinn's voice, followed by her hugging Santana from behind. "Mhmm." Santana replied, getting up to pull some clothes on. "Lisa left a note, we have to go rock climbing after breakfast." Quinn smiled sleepily, Santana thought it was cute. "Cool."

They ate breakfast, yawning, and talking to Brittany and Sam who were reenacting how scared they both were when a wild bird entered their cabin during the night. Sam freaked out while Brittany talked to the bird in whale language and calmed it down before the camp council could come in, take it and release it back into the woods.

Puck stood up when everybody had finished eating. "I.. I have an announcement. Mostly cause Kurt and Blaine are making us do this after we spoke to them.. So, I'm dating Finn." Finn beamed, Santana's eyebrows raised, Quinn clapped, and Rachel wooped. "I'm dating Sugar." Rachel said, to more approving reactions. It wasn't like everybody didn't already know.

"Campers, campers! What a wonderful day you have ahead of you!" Lisa called, striding in in to the camp centre with her ridiculous plastic smile. "Today, you'll be rock climbing on a mini cliff!"

–

The campers followed Lisa with uninterested expressions on their faces. They were all given a golf buggy each, one for each assigned partner, and followed Lisa's cart across the entire camp until they reached a small cliff. Not big enough to even be called a cliff, in Santana's opinion. More like a shrivelled up cliff. There were still sharp jagged rocks along it in rickety patterns, dangerous looking. And a mildly flat surface on the top for people to walk along once they had finished.

A small, tanned man who identified himself as Robert told the campers how to climb safely and strapped them in to harnesses. The first ones up were Sam and Brittany, with Finn and Puck right behind them. Brittany and Sam finished first and lowered themselves down, Finn finished behind Puck and Rachel and Sugar went up while they were climbing down. Sugar finished first and did a victory dance on the top while Rachel lowered herself down halfway through, too scared to continue.

Santana and Quinn were next. Santana was less scared than she thought she would be, while Quinn wobbled nervously and climbed back down before she'd reach the halfway point. Santana climbed all the way to the top and spared herself a victory dance, hoisting herself down again.

Blaine and Kurt went last, with everyone cheering them on. Kurt got about three feet above ground level and jumped back down, shaking his head furiously. Blaine reached the top, and hoisted himself up to the pathway so he could woop. He was climbing back down, about ten feet from the ground, when there was a crack of stone, a snap of elastic and a terrifying scream resulting in Blaine hitting the ground with a _thump_ beside a sickening _crunch_ that saw blood all around his limp body. Kurt screamed, Rachel and Sugar gasped, Brittany, Sam, Quinn and Finn all gave gasps of horror, while Santana and Puck stared in utter disbelief.

The ambulance was quicker than expected. Kurt was crying over Blaine, stroking his hair and offering choked words of comfort. A paramedic spoke briefly with Lisa. Blaine had broken his leg in two places, fractured his arm and had a large wound in his side that would need an awful lot of stitches. He carried Blaine off the site on a stretcher and loaded him on to an ambulance helicopter.

Everybody was stunned. Quinn comforted Kurt who was still crying. Eventually, Lisa ordered them all off the site and back to their cabins until dinner.

–

_10:15pm, a clearing in the woods._

After tucking Kurt into bed in his own cabin, assuring him everything would be fine, Quinn and Santana picked up their blanket and walked to the clearing in the woods they'd been in, during their first few days. Quinn wanted to take Santana to look at the stars.

A message was sent to Lisa from the hospital saying that Blaine might not be coming back, and his family was keen for him to return home.

Santana lay down on the blanket beside Quinn and gazed up at the glowing stars, contrasting against the thick black sky. "It's beautiful," Santana said. "Like you." Quinn whispered.

They stared up at the sky for an hour, before the wind changed into a dull chill and they decided it would be best to head back to the cabin and go to bed. Their bed was warm, and Santana leaned into Quinn even closer than usual.

"Is something wrong?" Quinn asked, feeling how Santana was clinging to her. "I'm fine.. I just don't want this to end. It's going too fast." Quinn shifted, pulling Santana close. "I know. But we still have to test this 'summer fling' thing, right? So we can see each other after." Santana sighed. "I know, but it won't be the same.. It'll be different. We won't be under the stars and in the sun and in a beautiful little cabin and with all these amazing people." Quinn's smile was visible in the dark. "We will be. Nothing breaks a friendship like this. Or a love."

* * *

><p><p>

**Again, I'm sorry this was ridiculously short. I'm studying so much. :(**

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><strong>More reviews with ideas would be awesome! Thanks for the love! :)<strong>

_Will Blaine return to Kurt? What will become of the group and their relationships when the camp graduation day is upon them?_


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER SIX: THE END OF THE BEGINNING, THE BEGINNING OF THE END**

One day left. The calender inside Santana's head made her heart scrunch itself up into a ball and sink into her stomach. Not waking up every morning with Quinn wrapped around her, then spending the day doing ridiculous activities and lying underneath the stars on a night until she fell asleep beside the most beautiful girl in the world was a prospect Santana didn't want to face.

Quinn was awake first, technically, as Santana pretended to be asleep. She hadn't got a minute of sleep all night. She allowed Quinn to make her some breakfast, returned her kisses, and painted on a satisfied smile when inside she felt sick.

Quinn eventually picked up on this, and sat opposite Santana on the porch. "What is it, San? You can tell me." Santana sighed. "I don't want to leave. I know I can still see you.. But it won't be the same." Quinn smiled, taking Santana's hand. "I know. We can't jump to conclusions, though, Santana. You said it yourself we have to determine whether or not this is a summer romance from two sexually frustrated teenage girls sharing a bedroom." Santana frowned, not understanding. "No, you said – you said you were looking for your right girl." "Yes, I did." Quinn said, looking guilty. "Maybe I shouldn't have said that, maybe it was too soon – I just don't want us to make too big a commitment for it to end badly -" Santana stood up, outraged. "End badly? No, Quinn. _This_ is what ending badly looks like." She stormed away, hot tears burning her cheeks, not heading in any specific direction until she walked into a solid figure.

"Ouch – wait, oh my God, what happened? Santana?" Rachel put her arms around Santana, while Sugar took one of her hands. "Are you okay? Come on," they marched her to their cabin, sitting her on the couch. They let her shout out all the mean things she wanted to say about Quinn, let her cry for forty minutes and waited until she was ready to tell them what happened. Rachel offered comforting words and Sugar made all three of them a glass of ice-cold water. "It's just one little argument, Sanny," Sugar said. "As soon as you get back to your cabin you can both talk it through and it'll be okay." Santana thought she could be right. "The camp graduation will be starting soon. We're all meant to have our things packed. Would you like me to come with you? To pack?" Rachel asked.

–

Rachel walked with Santana back to her and Quinn's cabin, and Santana headed straight upstairs to collect all of her belongings quietly. She heard from the floor below, a rustle of paper and a small _'oh no'_. She didn't glance at Quinn's bed, so she didn't notice that it was neatly made and all of the blonde's belongings weren't there. Once packed up, Santana dragged her suitcases and bags down the stairs and threw them into a heap near Rachel, feeling slightly sweaty.

"What is it?" Santana asked, fanning herself and internally cursing the stupid damn heat in this place. "Quinn.. Quinn left, Santana. She left a note saying she called her parents to pick her up. I'm so sorry." Santana collapsed into the couch, devastated. She would never see Quinn again. She knew they must live relatively close to each other, and it would take a lot to find her. Now that they'd had this argument Quinn wouldn't _want_ Santana to find her. She'd probably move away or hide whenever she saw Santana anywhere.

"Do you want to be alone?" Rachel asked timidly, and Santana broke out of her trance realizing she'd been staring at the floor for five minutes. "No, let's go." Rachel helped Santana pull all of her luggage down the steep hill, where they were being loaded on to the coach for after the graduation. They were all instructed via note from Lisa to tidy up their cabins and make sure they were all clean as once they left a group of elderly people would be coming to stay for two weeks on a wild birdwatching vacation.

The two of them, out of breath, took a slow walk back up the hill so they could get ready in Rachel and Sugar's cabin. Santana didn't make an effort with her appearance. Her stomach felt like it'd been kicked in, and her head ached. She couldn't shake the feelings of guilt and anxiety, combined with the harsh reality that she'd never see Quinn again, never hold her again; and sure as hell wouldn't start a family with her. Just the sheer imagining of living the rest of her life without getting to finish whatever she'd started with Quinn knocked Santana dizzy with fear and made her eyes swim with hot tears.

"Santana, are you ready?" called a voice from downstairs. "Yeah," Santana called back, wiping her eyes on her wrist and sucking in a deep breath. She trekked down the stairs to a concerned looking pair of girls. Sugar looked as if she didn't know what to say, while Rachel's expression displayed sympathy. She followed them out of the cabin and down the hill.

They saw the other pairs on their way down. Some looking sad to leave their cabins, like Kurt who had been sleeping on his own for weeks since Blaine was taken to hospital. Santana thought he looked as if he wanted to stay there and wait for Blaine's return that wouldn't come. He hadn't even done any group activities or left the cabin since Blaine left. Brittany and Sam didn't seem to mind that they were leaving, or notice, since they were so busy kissing each other. Finn and Puck playfully pushed each other around, but once they looked away from one another there were pained expressions on their faces that seemed to be saying, _how are we gonna keep this up out in the real world, without the safety of the cabins and acceptance of this group?_

Rachel and Sugar held hands in front of Santana, which sickened her. All of the remaining camp members walked limply down the hill and filed into the camp centre, where a small stage and some chairs had been set up. Lisa stood up with a teary expression on her face and tapped the microphone.

"I wasn't expecting to deliver a speech," she said, slightly shaky. "But I thought you deserved it. All of you. When I was told that I'd be looking after a group of delinquent fifteen year olds.. I didn't really have a reaction. I hope I did good by all of you. Because seeing you all grow up so fast in just six weeks... It's amazing. You're all going to be wonderful people, honestly. I am so proud of you." A small amount of polite applause broke out. Everybody was more shocked than thankful, as nobody had ever been 'proud' of them. Kurt stood up to deliver his goodbye.

"I've had a great time here with Blaine, and unfortunately he isn't here to deliver his own speech. So I'd just like to say thank you to everybody for making me realize it's okay to trust people. And I've built some really amazing friendships, thank you."

Finn spoke next. "I'm not very good at speeches, I guess... Thanks." Puck didn't get up, instead he held Finn's hand. Santana heard Rachel and Sugar discussing who should speak for their cabin, and Rachel agreed.

"Hello, everyone. First off, I'm very glad that I messed my life up and came here. Because not only did I meet a love interest, I made some amazing friends like Santana and Kurt. I feel very blessed, thank you all so much."

Sam stood up for his cabin. "Wow, so, thanks to Lisa, I suppose, for making every day really fun. Apart from when Blaine almost died -" Kurt looked at the floor. "But I met Brittany, and that's awesome. I feel like we all have this connection that nobody else will ever have. Thanks."

–

There was a ceremonial lunch for everyone, but nobody felt much like eating. They all picked at small bits of food and eventually left for the coach. It felt strangely empty, inside Santana's head. On the bus here she'd been adamant to be back home with Emilio, now all she wanted was to sit on the bed of that cabin and wait for Quinn to walk through the door and hug her.

The first coach dropped them to the local coach station, where their suitcases were waiting on the next coach. Santana and Kurt were the last to board, and just as their feet were stepping on to the coach -

"Hey! Wait!" They both whipped around, and a crutch-bound Blaine was hobbling towards them covered in casts and bandages and bruises. "Did I miss the food?" Kurt burst into tears and pulled Blaine close. Santana watched, still feeling empty, until a shy-looking Quinn poked her head out from behind Blaine. Her breath hitched in her throat and her bags fell to the floor. She didn't know she was crying until the tears stung her cheeks.

"Hi," Quinn said, moving timidly towards the dark-haired girl and looking guilty. "Please forgive -" her words were cut off by Santana's kiss. It could have lasted five seconds or five minutes, but an ecstatic looking Kurt pulled them apart by the shoulders and assisted them with their bags on to the coach. Santana sat beside Quinn and they both passed into a beautiful, comfortable silence for the rest of the coach ride.

Ohio Airport rolled into view, and the only person there to pick Santana up was Emilio; leaning against his car. Santana was pleased by this, knowing this was her moment to show Quinn how serious she was about the fact it was more than a summer fling.

"Em," Santana called, dragging Quinn over to him. "This is Quinn. I want to be with her forever."

**In the next chapter... Basically how all the relationships work out. Happy ending or heartbreak? You decide in the reviews!**


	7. Chapter 7

**EPILOGUE**

In the heart of the Ohio woodland, there is a small village by the name of Sunny Cove. It used to be part of a summer camp facility. In 2011, the final group of young misfits passed through the summer camp; and exactly three days after they departed the entire facility was destroyed by a fire that started in the forest. All that remained were crisp, black shells of the buildings. The company that ran the summer camps refused to pay for it to be fixed, and therefore it was all left to decay.

The last group to stay there were ten young, troubled teens who found their lives changed by the experience. Their names were Santana Lopez, Quinn Fabray, Brittany Pierce, Sam Evans, Kurt Hummel, Blaine Anderson, Sugar Motta, Rachel Berry, Finn Hudson and Noah Puckerman. They stayed in contact when they left, upon discovering they lived closer to each other than they thought. Regular phone calls, letters, emails, text messages and Skype calls were used between them. Their old head of camp quarter, Lisa Goodwell, contacted them after the fire. They were devastated.

It was the idea of Noah Puckerman to buy the rights to the land between them, and make sure at least Sunny Cove was saved. Santana asked her father and he invested a decent amount of money. The rest of them worked after school every day and all through their weekends raising money. Car washing, cutting grass, cleaning houses, asking people for donations. Between them, these ten fifteen year olds managed to raise enough to buy the rights to Sunny Cove, the lake and waterfall, the old camp centre, and a lot of land around it. The remains of the other three camp quarters were destroyed and only stretching land remains there now.

It was turned into a village, named Sunny Cove, and the old cabins were rebuilt and remodelled to contain clean running water for bathtubs and showers, as well as working fridges and freezers and TVs and electricity.

The year is 2023, and there isn't a cabin in Sunny Cove that isn't filled. When you walk to the top of the hill and come across Cabin 1, the happy home of Sam and Brittany Evans, along with their twin girls, Stacy and Emma Evans. They're four years old. Brittany cares for the animals in the woods around the village, and returns any injured creatures to full health.

The second cabin contains Finn and Noah Hudson-Puckerman. They're currently thinking of adopting a child. Puck is a ranger for the woods surrounding their homes and works with Brittany to ensure the safety of the animals. Finn became a teacher, and uses the camp centre to teach the children in the village. It's his passion.

Third cabin along, Blaine and Kurt Anderson-Hummel. They have an adopted son called Ben, he's seven years old. Blaine works in the city, building new houses, and the city centre is a forty minute drive so he doesn't get home till late. Kurt has to go to work in the city, too, being a volunteer at a homeless shelter. Ben is usually looked after by me.

The fourth cabin's walls hide Rachel and Sugar Berry. Rachel is hardly home, as she's usually in her office in the city where she runs a talent agency for young actors and actresses. It's very successful, and Sugar is a currently carrying their triplets.

And we come to stop at the fifth cabin. Home to Quinn and Santana Fabray-Lopez. Quinn volunteers at the homeless shelter with Kurt, and when she gets home each evening she performs the same routine of picking up their eight year old adopted daughter, Jessica, and twirling her around; walking into the kitchen where Santana is cooking and kissing her before helping with the dinner. After dinner they give Jessica a bath and tuck her into bed, once she's asleep they cuddle on the couch watching movies until both of them are too tired to keep their eyes open and they fall asleep in their bed holding each other.

And so concludes our story about ten misfits and their journeys. Each and every one found solace, friendship, love and a unique connection with one another. The story doesn't end here, although the telling of it does. For now, at least, their lives will continue, while they get up every morning to go to work, kiss their partners and children goodbye, and come home to find they love their families more each day.

Thank you for listening to my story.

Yours sincerely, Santana Fabray-Lopez.

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><strong>Thank you to everyone who read this! I'm proud of it. Any more fic ideas go in the reviews! I'd love to start writing more.<strong>


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